July 30, 1948: Wally Westlake hits for the cycle as Pirates double up Dodgers

The 31,278 fans who came through the turnstiles at Ebbets Field on July 30, 1948, saw something to always remember from the unlikeliest of hitters. Pittsburgh’s Wally Westlake hit for the cycle against the Brooklyn Dodgers.1 Westlake had gone 2-for-24 (two singles) in his previous seven games, a stretch that had seen his batting average drop 20 points. Yet on this day, he joined the ranks of those who had accomplished the rare feat of getting a single, double, triple, and home run in a game.

Westlake had played four seasons in the minors (from 1940 to 1942 and in 1946 – his career was interrupted by World War II service) before signing with the Pittsburgh Pirates. He batted .273 in his rookie 1947 season, playing all three outfield positions. In 1948 the outfielder had a steady place as the fifth batter in the Pirates’ lineup. He started the season strong, and by June 19 was batting .350. A little over a month later, on July 29, his average had slipped to .295.

The Pirates had only won five of 15 games since the All-Star Game, dropping from second to fifth in the standings. They came into Ebbets Field having lost all three games of a recent series with the Boston Braves. Further, this was the Pirates’ first trip to Ebbets Field since Leo Durocher was replaced by Burt Shotton as manager of the Dodgers.2 Pittsburgh’s situation was the inverse of Brooklyn’s. The Dodgers had gone 13-4 since the All-Star break and, dating back to July 2, had vaulted up in the National League standings from seventh place to second. Now, after sweeping a three-game series at home from the St. Louis Cardinals, Brooklyn was hosting the Pirates.

According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the Pirates “had their lineup revamped for the fourth time in as many games.”3 Manager Billy Meyer was searching for a spark that would ignite his offense. Stan Rojek once again was the leadoff batter, after three days in the seventh spot. After five straight games as a pinch-hitter, Frankie Gustine batted second, followed by ex-Dodger Dixie Walker, who had started the season as the Pirates’ cleanup hitter. Rookie right-hander Bob Chesnes took the mound for the Bucs. His previous start (in the first game of a doubleheader on July 25) was also against the Dodgers, when he pitched into the eighth inning, allowing six runs (five earned) in a 7-6 loss at home.

For the Dodgers, Ralph Branca, also a righty, was seeking his 13th win of the season. He had faced the Pirates earlier in the week (in the second game of the July 25 doubleheader) and had been unlucky. Although Branca had allowed only three runs in six innings pitched, Rex Barney had come on in relief in the seventh and gave up a grand slam to Danny Murtaugh after which the game was ended by the Sunday curfew.4

In the first inning, Chesnes made an error that set the stage for a Brooklyn offensive outburst. Marv Rackley hit a routine grounder to first baseman Max West. Chesnes ran over to cover the base and dropped the throw from West. Jackie Robinson walked, and Gene Hermanski reached safely on a bunt single to the pitcher. Still with none out, Dick Whitman grounded a ball to West and beat him to the bag. Rackley scored the unearned run. Roy Campanella also singled, plating Robinson. But the Dodgers came away with only those two runs, as Tommy Brown lined into a double play and Gil Hodges flied out.

Pittsburgh’s offense got going in the top of the second. Ralph Kiner singled and took third when Westlake doubled. West connected on an offering by Branca and “hammered the ball over the right field wall”5 for three runs and the lead. The score remained 3-2 until the fourth, when, with one out, Westlake “drove a 400-foot homer into the stands in dead center”6 for his 11th home run of the season. After West grounded out, Danny Murtaugh singled to left and Clyde Kluttz hit his third homer of the season. Pittsburgh had doubled its run total. After Kluttz’s blast, Branca exited the game. He had allowed three homers in this contest and had served up 20 round-trippers in 25 appearances to this point in the season.7

Rojek led off the top of the fifth with a double to left-center. Gustine blooped a single to right-center, driving home Rojek. With two outs, Westlake “rifled one off the concrete above Hermanski’s head and made three bases when the ball bounced swiftly back over Gene’s head.”8 No other outfielder was close enough to cut off the ricochet, so Westlake raced around the bases with a triple. West clubbed a fly ball to center, and Rackley misplayed the ball; Westlake scored easily and West made it to second. The Pirates had added three more tallies and now led 9-2.

Brooklyn answered in the bottom half with three runs of their own, when Hermanski hit his seventh home run of the season off Chesnes with pitcher Paul Minner9 and Robinson aboard. However, after the fifth inning, Chesnes was “master of the situation.”10 He held the Dodgers hitless from the end of the fifth until the ninth, when Robinson stroked a two-out single, his third hit of the game In the top of the seventh, Kiner lined a two-out single into left field, and Westlake followed by grounding a single up the middle, giving him the last hit necessary for the cycle. Neither runner scored, but Westlake was now 4-for-4 with three runs scored. In the top of the eighth, rookie Monty Basgall, who had entered the game as a pinch-runner for Murtaugh in the fourth inning and then stayed on to play second base, belted a Hugh Casey 2-and-0 pitch over the wall for his second homer of the season. After that, the last two frames went by without much action. Westlake batted one last time in the top of the ninth. He swung at Casey’s first offering and grounded to third baseman Brown, who threw to second to force out Kiner.

The final score was Pittsburgh 10, Brooklyn 5. The Pirates pounded out 14 base hits as they snapped their losing streak, and those “fourteen socks totaled thirty bases.”11 Chesnes went the distance, scattering eight hits and earning his sixth win. He had walked five Dodgers batters, but only two of those runners scored. Branca failed again to pick up win number 13; instead, he was tagged with his seventh loss. Half of the six hits he allowed had left the ballpark.

Westlake was the star of Pittsburgh’s offense. He drove in two runs and scored three. Noted the Pittsburgh Press, “The power in Wally Westlake’s bat, which is as unpredictable as which way the wind will blow tomorrow, was turned on again last night.”12 His batting average jumped to .305, and his slugging percentage increased by 29 points. Rojek contributed two hits to the offensive outpouring, giving him 99 base hits for the season (leading the team).

Pittsburgh and Brooklyn squared off again the next day, and Pirates skipper Meyer inserted the exact same lineup against the Dodgers (with Basgall starting this time for Murtaugh). The result was a 5-2 victory for the visitors. Westlake was 1-for-3 with two runs batted in. Rojek was 2-for-5 at the top of the batting order. Pittsburgh batted around in the top of the ninth, plating four runs to seal the win.

Westlake’s feat marked the 14th time in Pittsburgh franchise history that a batter had hit for the cycle.13 Westlake’s accomplishment was the second cycle of the 1948 season, joining New York Yankees star Joe DiMaggio, who had hit for the cycle for the second time in his career on May 20. A month after Westlake, Dodgers star Jackie Robinson became the third and final player of the 1948 season to hit for the cycle, doing so on August 29.

Westlake only had 33 extra-base hits in 1948,14 collecting three in this game. He became the first player in 1949 to hit for the cycle (June 14, 1949), again going 4-for-5, but this time with three runs batted in and two runs scored. Coincidentally, the home run in the 1949 game was also his 11th circuit clout of the season.

SOURCES

In addition to the sources mentioned in the Notes, the author consulted Baseball-Reference.com, Retrosheet.org, and SABR.org.

https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/BRO/BRO194807300.shtml

https://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1948/B07300BRO1948.htm

NOTES

1 Chester L. Smith, “Westlake Restores Waning Popularity with Meyer,” Pittsburgh Press, July 31, 1948: 6.

2 Durocher managed the Dodgers through the first half of the 1948 season. He even managed the National League squad in the All-Star Game, However, when the second half of the 1948 campaign started, Shotton was at the helm.

3 Vince Johnson, “Bob Chesnes Hurls Seven Hitter as Westlake Gets Four,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, July 31, 1948: 8.

4 See retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1948/B07252PIT1948.htm.

5 Johnson.

6 Johnson.

7 Branca allowed 24 home runs in 1948, fourth-most in the majors.

8 Roscoe McGowen, “Brooks Toppled by Chesnes, 10-5,” New York Times, July 31, 1948: 11.

9 Minner had relieved Branca in the fourth inning.

10 McGowen.

11 McGowen.

12 Smith.

13 Westlake joined Fred Carroll (May 2, 1887), Fred Clarke (July 23, 1901, and May 7, 1903), Chief Wilson (July 3, 1910), Honus Wagner (August 22, 1912), Dave Robertson (August 30, 1921), Pie Traynor (July 7, 1923), Kiki Cuyler (June 4, 1925), Max Carey (June 20, 1925), Arky Vaughan (June 24, 1933, and July 19, 1939), Bob Elliott (July 15, 1945) and Bill Salkeld (August 4, 1945), as Pittsburgh players who had hit for the cycle.

14 Westlake had 10 doubles, six triples and 17 homers in 1948.